I admit I’m a sucker for watches with classic and simple design. Don’t get me wrong. I still love complications very much and found them very very fascinating. Just thinking about a the common chronograph function can make me wonder in excitement. But sometimes, a simply designed watch without all those fancy complications is just what you need.
Here comes Citizen NB0040-53E The Grand Classic Automatic from The Signature Collection line. A simply gorgeous high quality watch, handcrafted by the folks at Citizen. If you are looking for a classic dress watch, with a high quality finish and movement then this watch is definitely for you.
Citizen Signature Collection Grand Classic NB0040-58E Specification
Diameter: 42 mm
Thickness: 12.5 mm
Weight: 5.62 oz / 159 gram
Movement: Citizen caliber 9010 with 24 jewels. Japanese movement with 42 hours power reserve. Automatic and manual winding with hacking feature
Case Material: Silver tone stainless steel
Dial: Black metal dial with exquisite textured design
Dial Window: Dual coated anti-reflective sapphire crystal (same material is used for caseback)
Band: Silver tone stainless steel with fold over clasp and push button
Band Width: 22 mm
Water Resistant: 330 feet / 100 m / 10 bar
Other Features: Date display, Non-rotated bezel, Exhibition caseback, Hand crafted mechanical parts that can be seen from back, Luminous hands and hour markers.
Beautiful Classic Design
The Grand Classic NB0040-58E is so pretty to look at. The picture above will not do it justice. You have to look at it in the flesh to really “see” its true beauty. The thing about watches is they are rarely photogenic. A gorgeous watch will not be very pretty in photos. I’ve embedded this video below to show you how beautiful the Grand Classic NB0040-58E truly is.
Citizen Signature Collection Grand Classic Automatic NB0040-58E On Wrist Video
As you can see, the designer uses a lot of reflective elements such as the stainless steel case, black metal dial, the dial window and stainless steel hands and hour markers to create this watch. This is why the picture of the watch can look not so enticing, but the real thing can be a great pleasure to look at. As you can see, the watch dial is very simple, only the hands, hour markers, date display and signatures of “Citizen” and “Automatic” are there. The dial itself is black in color, without fancy decorations but some delicate designs on its face. At the end of the day, you are getting a simple watch that is just so nice to look at. The quality of finish of this watch is simply stunning, and can rival those Swiss made watches.
The watch is 42 mm in diameter and has a thickness of 12.5 mm. It is not too big or too small. It’s just 5.62 oz or 159 gram. A bit heavy but that is to be expected of a stainless steel case watch. In return, the watch has a 10 bar water resistance or equal to 330 feet/100 m water resistance. This means you can use this watch for swimming or showering. Just make sure you do not operate the crown while in water. The band is 22 mm width, and also made of stainless steel.
The dial window is made of dual coated anti-reflective sapphire crystal. his means the dial will not get any scratch on it (unless you are using this watch in a harsh environment). Citizen has opted for single lines as its hand markers, instead of the normal numbers. The only indication is the “Citizen” signature and date display that will give hints of the 12 and 3 o’clock positions. This just further enhanced the classical and simple design of the watch. It also features a non-rotated bezel that have single lines as minute markers. Since it’s non-rotating, the edge of the watch from the bezel can be made to continuously sloping down to the case, creating a sleek look from the sides.
Stunning Exhibition Caseback
The hand and hour markers contain luminous materials that will give off blue citizen lume in dark. An exhibition caseback made of sapphire crystal can be found at its back. This back window will show you the back part of the movement as well as the rotor. The exposed parts are beautifully hand crafted and you can even see some of the 24 jewels used in this watch.
Promotional Video of the Grand Classic NB0040-58E by Citizen
Citizen Caliber 9010 – A High Quality Movement
This watch is powered by Caliber 9010, a movement by Citizen. It features a high beat rate, with 42 hours power reserve, typical for automatic watches. It uses 24 jewels in its movement parts. The movement is a high quality one as can be seen from the very smooth seconds hand movement. The good thing about this movement is that besides being an automatic, it also can be manually wound. By rotating the crown clockwise 40 times, you can fully wound the mainspring. It’s very convenient for those with many watches and don’t want their watches to sit idly for days. Citizen cite this watch as having -10 to +30 seconds accuracy per day but other reviews I’ve found on the internet give better results. Most of them report a +-4 seconds per day accuracy. Now that’s a huge feat for a non-chronometer watch.
Conclusion
Grand Classic NB0040-58E is a beautifully designed watch. It’s made of the highest quality craftsmanship by Citizen, the 8 decades old watch company. Comes with a high quality movement in the Caliber 9010, this is a watch that you will look forward to wear and look at.
Currently, Amazon has hefty discount on the Signature Grand Classic NB0040-58E. The MSRP is around $900 but you can get if way cheaper on Amazon. Don’t miss out on this great deal. Click on the link below to go to Amazon to check out this watch.
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